Tuesdays are Top 10 Tuesdays where I count down a topic in the TV realm. This week is Top 10 Shows That Exemplify New York City! This is not a list of my favorite shows set in New York City but rather ones that I think effectively capture something about the city.
Close Calls
30 Rock
Spin City
Mad About You
Several of the shows on this list were filmed in Los Angeles and yet still capture the vibe of a particular part of New York City. For That Girl, it was the struggling actress life. As she bounced between TV commercials and theater auditions, her actress journey felt distinctly like a New York one.
9. Blue Bloods
This is filmed in New York which helps it immensely (something NYPD Blue always struggled with). It's always been the best version of New York City police and something policing should aspire to in the same way that The West Wing is something politics should aspire to.
8. Taxi
A show that captured a grungier side of the city than a lot of other shows on this list, Taxi had a bunch of eccentric cab drivers and the show captured blue collar life of 1970s New York pretty effectively.
8. Seinfeld
Many consider this the quintessential New York show. I just haven't seen enough episodes to rank it higher but I get why people say that. It explores the quirkier side as well as the minute issues that might come up in the day to day life of New Yorkers.
This show has a little bit of a fairytale look at the New York City of the late 50s and early 60s but it still captures much of the glamour of the city at the time. I'm sure most people didn't live like the characters in this show but some of them did!
5. Friends
Friends is one of my favorite shows and there are elements that make a quintessential New York show. Except it also doesn't really make a whole lot of sense because Monica would never have an apartment like that and the street scenes don't really resemble New York City as much as a Hollywood soundstage. But still, it's one of the most famous New York-set shows of all time and it captures it well at times.
4. Mad Men
Another shows that captured the glamour of New York City in a different era, like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Except this was less of a fantasy and more of a painstaking re-creation of the advertising world of the 60s on Madison Avenue. It makes it that much stronger of an NYC show.
3. Today
One of the most iconic TV institutions, Today is a New York City staple and has been welcoming crowds outside Rockefeller Center since the 1950s (until the pandemic but I'm sure it will return). It's become one of the must-do activities when visiting Manhattan.
2. Saturday Night Live
Live from Studio 8H, it's another show that films in Rockefeller Center. Saturday Night Live has been a staple of the city since 1975. Sometimes it's super hip, sometimes it's super lame. But it has always had people talking and it's hard to imagine it not being there.
An iconic New York City show, pretty much every Broadway actor has appeared on a Law & Order show at least once. This is a situation where the city is pretty much another character on the show and they've proudly filmed in the city since 1990. There's a reason why Law & Order: Los Angeles didn't work.
Tomorrow: A look at 1960s flop Accidental Family!
Next Tuesday: Top 10 Game Shows!
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